1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to vehicle seats for infants and children and more particularly, to a rotating child's seat which is adjustably mounted in the front or rear seat backrest of a vehicle. In a preferred embodiment, the rotating child's seat is rotatably or pivotally mounted in a bifurcation provided in the rear seat backrest above the rear bench seat of the vehicle. When the rotating child's seat is in use, an infant or child is strapped in the seat portion thereof while the seat portion is oriented forwardly of the backrest and above the bench seat at a selected angle. The seat portion of the rotating child's seat is fitted with conventional shoulder straps and a leg divider strap and in a preferred embodiment, is designed to rotate or pivot to a stored and nonfunctional position in the vehicle trunk when not in use. When the rotating child's seat is so positioned in the trunk of the vehicle, a back portion rotates or pivots into alignment with the backrest pads of the backrest to accommodate an additional adult or adults on the back seat of the vehicle. An adjusting panel latch and hinged access panel in the trunk divider serve to facilitate rotation or pivoting of the rotating child's seat into adjustable functional and stored configurations, respectively.
One of the problems associated with the use of portable seats and similar structures known as "car seats" for carrying infants and children in vehicles, is that of properly supporting and stabilizing the car seats on the front or rear seats of a vehicle. Typically, straps, bars, belts and harness restraints of various description are used to engage the vehicle seats, in order to immobilize or at least partially stabilize the car seats such that children can be placed in, transported and removed from the seats at the convenience of the parents with at least some degree of security. A disadvantage found in car seats and carriers of this design is the requirement of periodically tightening the straps, belts or harness to secure the car seats in place and subsequently loosening the restraints to remove the seats when it is desired to provide room for one or more additional adults. Furthermore, under circumstances of severe braking or acceleration of the vehicle, the securing restraints of the infant seat or carrier sometimes work loose and allow the carrier to fall forward or sideways while the vehicle is in motion, which may result in injury to the infant or child. This problem is intensified under circumstances where the straps or restraints are periodically loosened to remove the carrier from the vehicle. Legislation requiring that children and infants be secured in a properly designed car seat has been enacted.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of removable or foldable vehicle seats are known in the prior art. Among these is the "Car Seat" disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,337,295, dated Apr. 20, 1920, to C. H. Turner. The Turner car seat is designed to accommodate the motorman or car operator in vehicles such as street cars and the like and is characterized by a pivoting auxiliary seat which is mounted to a conventional vehicle seat and is designed to pivot into functional configuration for driver seating purposes and alternatively, into a folded configuration to accommodate a passenger. Another early "Vehicle Seat" is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 461,832, dated Oct. 27, 1891, to G. E. Hatch. The Hatch vehicle seat is a supplemental seat which is arranged and supported over the main seat in a vehicle in such a manner as to leave practically the full seating space of the main seat for use by the persons occupying it. The supplemental seat is supported by a narrow frame, part of which rests on the primary seat and another element of which engages the underside of the primary seat for support purposes. The vehicle seat is designed to fold flat for storage in another location. U.S. Pat. No. 3,951,450, dated Apr. 20, 1976, to Paul Gambotti, discloses an "Infant Seat For Automotive and Other Vehicles". This seat is designed for an automobile or other vehicle and is mounted in an open recess in the back of a primary vehicle seat. The infant seat is folded and articulated in this recess, such that it may be received fully in the recess or alternatively extended from the recess to accommodate a child. U.S. Pat. No. 2,140,968, dated Dec. 20, 1938, to A. Paranzino discloses an "Automobile Body", which incorporates a folding seat arrangement to facilitate a sleeping compartment in the rear area of an autombile. The seat cushion folds and extends to accommodate an auxiliary seat cushion which is normally located in the trunk to facilitate the sleeping accommodations. A "Built-In Automobile Refreshment Bar" is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,525,952, dated Oct. 17, 1950, to C. J. Saterlie, et al. The refreshment bar is located behind the rear bench seat in the vehicle and is opened by swinging the seat back portion forwardly, with the seat back portion then serving as a table upon which articles of food and drink may be retrieved from the compartment and served. U.S. Pat. No. 2,966,201, dated Dec. 27, 1960, to L. W. Strahler, discloses an "Automobile Seat and Cradle". The automobile seat and cradle detailed in this patent includes an arm rest provided with a cavity therein for receiving an infant when in the downwardly-folded configuration. U.S. Pat. No. 4,555,135, dated Nov. 26, 1985, to V. L. Freeland, discloses a "Built-In Child's Safety Seat for Vehicles". The safety seat may be conveniently stored within the horizontal seating surface of a passenger seat when not in use. A child's safety seat is deployed by a simple pulling motion, wherein the safety seat is deployed from the bench seat such that the child is positioned in a rearwardly-facing orientation facing the backrest portion of the seat. A "Seat For Vehicles" is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,905, dated Dec. 17, 1985, to T. Natori. The seat detailed in this patent includes a top layer member which incorporates a heating element therein. Each of the heating elements is enclosed by a cover which is extended with an integral hang portion for fixing the top layer member. The hang portion is fixedly secured to a fixing member provided within the seat. An "Integrated Safety Seat For Children in Motor Cars" is disclosed in German Patent No. 3,215,488, dated November, 1983. The child's safety seat is integrated into the vehicle seat back so that the seat back shell can be tipped forward on a horizontal axis. The angle of the seat can then be adjusted by lifting the hinge axle within the main seat back. A "Rear Parcel Shelf For An Automobile" is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 0057537, which issued in May of 1981. The patent details a rotatory means and a cooperating slide means mounted to a front parcel shelf for an automobile, in order to facilitate receipt and removal of parcels in a compartment closed by the rotatory means and cooperating sliding means. U.S. Pat. No. 3,822,911, dated July 9, 1974, to A. O. Radke, et al, discloses a "Convertible Seat, Support Platform and Storage Compartment For Motor Vehicle". The convertible seat detailed in this patent includes a base portion for supporting a seat cushion and rearwardly-extending, upright side portions. The side portions are connected at their upper edges by top and front wall portions which cooperate with a rear seat cushion attached to the front of the uprights below the front wall portion, to define the storage compartment behind the seat. The front seat cushion is pivotally mounted to the base so that it may be flipped forwardly to define a flat support platform. A two-sectioned rear flat support platform is also pivotally mounted behind the rear seat cushion in such a way that the reat support sections can be held in a generally vertical position when not being used, thus permitting the storage compartment to accommodate tall articles. Alternatively, the rear sections can be placed in a horizontal position within the rear section, either being folded under the front section or extended outwardly therefrom, to provide a shallow or deep lower shelf in the storage compartment.
It is an object of this invention to provide a rotating child's seat for installation in vehicles, wherein the rotating child's seat is designed to selectively rotate or pivot into a functional, adjustable configuration above the bench seat of the vehicle and into a nonfunctional configuration, either into the trunk, when the child's seat is mounted in the rear seat backrest, or rearwardly of the front seat backrest, when the child's seat is mounted in the front seat backrest.
Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved child's seat for vehicles, which child's seat is rotatably or pivotally mounted in the backrest of either the front or back seat of the vehicle, such that the child's seat can be selectively rotated or pivoted into functional configuration above the bench seat in one of several adjustable positions, and a child placed therein and securely strapped thereto and the child's seat alternatively rotated or pivoted rearwardly of the backrest into the trunk of the vehicle or rearwardly of the front seat, when not in use.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a rotating child's seat which is rotatably mounted in a bifurcation provided in the backrest of the rear seat of a vehicle, wherein a child can be strapped into the child's seat when the child's seat is located in functional configuration over the bench seat at a selected angle with respect to the vertical and when the child's seat is not in use, it can be rotated into the trunk and a cooperating contoured back portion of the child's seat rotated into the bifurcation in alignment with the vehicle seat backrest.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a rotating child's seat which is pivotally mounted in a slot or bifurcation provided in the rear backrest of a vehicle seat, which rotating child's seat is provided with a seat portion having an angle adjustment feature for accommodating an infant or child in a selected angular relationship with respect to the backrest and a back portion which corresponds substantially to the curvature of the vehicle seat backrest, wherein the rotating child's seat can be pivoted into functional configuration to adjustably carry a child on the seat portion thereof, or into a stored configuration in the trunk, with the contoured back portion provided in alignment with the backrest pad of the seat backrest.
A still further object of this invention is to provide a rotating child's seat for vehicles, which child's seat is rotatably and pivotally mounted in an opening in the reat backrest of a vehicle seat, with a hinged access panel provided in the trunk divider, a panel latch attached to the trunk divider and spaced seat-adjusting openings located in the pivoting element of the child's seat for receiving the panel latch, to both stabilize the child's seat at a selected angle and facilitate rotation and pivoting of the child's seat, such that the seat portion is oriented into functional configuration above the bench seat and selectively into non-functional configuration in the trunk of the vehicle.